@rwinney Glad you posted this a good reminder for us that use these and for those who never have for them to start .

The only pain I get from Gabapentin is I want to die

Let's strive for accuracy in our communications. Exaggerations don't help anyone. We're all different - some of us need medicines that didn't work for others. Thanks! Peggy

Hello! I never had that feeling while taking the drug but then I wasn't on it very long. I had a very rare side effect of non status epilepticus that lasted 2 hours. It took an hour for me to get out of it in the ER. Thank god I was at my mother's house then or today I would be dead!

@sandytoes14 Thank you for this information. I do have a 1:1 product. They are tablets. I have also purchased cannabis oral spray blackberry flavored (Yuk) It is also 1:1. I think the several negative experience I have had holds me back from getting into regular use. I am now wearing my shoes in the house hoping that would help for pain relief. No, anything on the top of my feet and ankles feels like my skin is being ripped off and alcohol poured on. My anxiety and depression adds to the pain. I am going to get back into the CBD/THC.

Hi all, I've modified the title of this discussion to "Side effects and benefits of Gabapentin." While many of you have had really difficult reactions and side effects to the drug (thanks for sharing), I have read elsewhere on the forum that this drug works well for some people.

For those of you who had poor experiences with gabapentin, did you switch to another medication that worked? Did a different dosage or taking at a different time of day help, or taking extended-release vs immediate release?

Despite the drug's potentially serious side effects, some people depend on this drug to control seizures and manage pain successfully. I'd like to hear from people who have had success with this drug as well. Anyone? How has it helped you? What form of the drug works for you?

Stephen wsh66: Are you a neurologist? Peggy

My neurologist explained to me that: My nervous system's job is to radiate pain when my body is being damaged, to alert me so that I can take actions to stop the damage. My nervous system performed well for 60 + years but now, it's old, it's dying and it's not working so well any more. It dies at the small tip ends first, then death works its way up the larger trunk lines. So ... when my feet feel like they're being burned up in a bonfire but there's no fire anywhere around, my nervous system is sputtering, misfiring, and sending false messages. Lyrica/Gabapentin calms the nervous system so it settles down and stops sending out false messages. Lyrica/Gaba aren't pain killers, they won't kill any pain anywhere like pain killers do, nor do they cure neuropathy (there's no cure for dying). As it dies further up and I feel pain (it may be false messages but the pain is real), and it gets higher and more intense, I need more Lyrica/Gaba, and some day these won't be enough, but if I take more than is recommended, the medicine will stop my heart. Then we go to narcotics just to kill the pain. Researchers are looking for alternatives to narcotics but at this time, there is nothing adequate.

I asked my neurologist about amputating the toes ... she said that my nervous system would start dying in my feet and ankles and moving upward. I planned to ask her about the possibility of a 'nervous system transplant' at my next appointment, but, I looked at my Human Anatomy text book from college - the nervous system looks similar to the vascular system, it runs all over the body. If surgeons tried to replace the misfiring nerves with good ones, every inch of my body would have incisions and stitches internally and externally - I would probably die from that. I asked my pain doctor if suicide rates are very high among people who have neuropathy ... he said "yes, very high".

So, I got my affairs in order and moved to the beach. Life is so much easier! Now I understand what is meant by "don't sweat the small stuff". I gave up having 'axes to grind', I gave up trying to save the world. I'm enjoying simple pleasures like running on the beach, playing cribbage with my husband; having girlfriends over for bumper-pool and indoor croquet, and sending out for pizza.

I do get concerned about getting the medicine because it's harder and harder since politicians put it on the 'controlled substance' list because they think it has 'the potential for abuse'. Peggy

Finally found a pharmacist who confided in me how Lyrica and Gabapentin are being misused. Apparently when mixed with Heroin they can intensify the high and make it last longer. Think about this hey, if you're a doctor and you have a patient who's a heroin addict you're just don't give him Neurontin or Lyrica. Fortunately in the over 60 set there aren't many heroin addicts left at that point in life. But that won't stop them from making you show your license in many states when you pick up your Lyrica. Don't amputate your toes. Please don't do that, love and blessings

Having depression issues along with ain is a bummer